How to Kill Weeds With Rock Salt

Kill weeds and invite butterflies with rock salt.

Salt has been used to kill weeds since the early days of ancient Rome. The ancient city of Carthage and its agriculture were destroyed by the Romans, who some believe sowed rock salt into the territory’s croplands following the fatal siege of the last Punic war. Rock salt and table salt are both made of sodium chloride. Table salt is finely ground, purified rock salt. Rock salt has a gray tint because it’s unrefined, rendering its large, coarse crystals unsuitable for table use. The chunky crystals make it less expensive and easier to use for highly effective and economical organic home weed control. This is a permanent solution for areas you never want anything else to grow in again.

1

Sprinkle a few chunks of rock salt on the soil surface at the bases of weeds. They’ll begin dying from desiccation within several days. Use salt sparingly, and don’t count on anything growing there or in the area immediately surrounding it for years to come. Salt leaches into the ground and essentially sterilizes it, preventing vegetative re-growth.

2

Spread a thin layer of rock salt between your walkway’s bricks, pavers or stones. It will kill any weeds or grass growing there, and keep them away for years.

3

Apply rock salt to cracks and crevices in your pavement or driveway. Spread it over gravel walks and drives. It will remain active and prevent re-infestation for quite some time.

4

Add 1 cup of rock salt to 1 gallon of hot water. Stir until the salt is dissolved. Pour the herbicide into a plastic spray bottle. Apply to crabgrass and broadleaf weeds. Reapply five days later. Complete the treatment with a third application five days after that.

Things You Will Need

Plastic spray bottle

Coarse sand (optional)

Shallow container (optional)

Tips

Invite butterflies to “puddle” in your garden with rock salt. Groups of butterflies often cluster on wet mud or sand to consume soil minerals. Combine 1 cup of rock salt with 1 gallon of coarse sand. Fill a shallow container with the mixture and embed it in the garden soil. Keep the mixture moist to attract butterflies and encourage puddling. The best spot for your puddle is near a drip or soaker hose, where it will always be wet.

Warnings

Rock salt doesn’t discriminate between weeds and other plants -- it kills them all, and they’ll never come back.

If you’re interested in improving soil condition, don’t apply any rock salt to the area. Salt serves to weaken the integrity of the soil, and may damage it permanently. The only antidote is to remove the tainted dirt and replace it with new soil, and even that may not restore the area.

About the Author

Pets and pet rescue are my greatest passions -- followed closely by global wildlife and our environment -- and I have done extensive research on pet and wildlife rescue, fostering, adoption, etc. on their behalf. I was a Florida State Wildlife Rehab Agent for a number of years. I currently specialize in locating online sites where part or all of the proceeds from the items that are purchased are donated to rescued animals in North American shelters, sanctuaries and preserves. I write material designed to entice and encourage shoppers to frequent these sites, many of which offer huge selections of all sorts of merchandise.{{}}